Worldcrunch
Both pessimism and optimism are stored in our genes: They helped us be watchful, while giving us the possibility to hope for a better future. But which one helps us lead a better life? For Die Zeit, Harald Martenstein, a self-declared pessimist, looks at the benefits of both.
The city of Valencia has not been affected by the natural disaster that caused more than 200 deaths in eastern Spain, but the region’s capital city is not the same. And the population is struggling to find a new balance.
Desperate Gaza residents now wait for a word on the success of ceasefire deal, which could allow them to return home. Even if They don’t know what will come next. But they definitely want an end to the war, and so their significant suffering. They want to return to their homes, even if they are demolished.
Children are Gaza’s most vulnerable. For those displaced families living in shelters, the cold weather, lack of food and spread of disease are among the most immediate threats. But children also face trauma, with virtually no resources
The economic crisis in neighboring Lebanon, coupled with COVID-19 travel restrictions, are causing the already war-ravished nation to drown in even greater misery.
Before it even began, the pandemic was already on the radar of big risks — and yet we were unprepared. Will it be the same for cyber security and environmental threats?
In the movie version, the contagion would lead to lawlessness and chaos. But in reality, institutions are encouragingly resilient.
Cleaning up after natural disasters has become a lucrative business, but raises questions for victims and governments alike.
On the 30th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, Kiev-based daily Den remembers “the red button that changed the world” on its front page, featuring a picture of Chernobyl’s “trumpeting angel” memorial. The Ukrainian-language newspaper tells the story of the April 26, 1986, nuclear catastrophe, one of the worst in history, and the fateful chain […]
EMERGENCY EU SUMMIT AFTER MIGRANT TRAGEDY European Union leaders are holding an emergency summit in Luxembourg to discuss a common response to the ongoing migrant crisis. But the EU’s Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini warned ahead of the meeting that there was “no easy solution, no magic solution,” the BBC reports. This comes just one […]
They were shocked by 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, and they firmly believe the world is coming to an end. To cope with the imminent disaster, some of these preparation enthusiasts (or “preppers”) turn their SUVs into armored fortresses while others buy fancy bunkers. Julie Zaugg met one of those so-called “survivalists.” NEW […]
DIE WELT (Germany) Worldcrunch Predicting earthquakes, floods, droughts and other assorted disasters is hardly an exact science. Still, as the just published 2012 WorldRiskReport notes, just how badly natural catastrophes hit comes down to how well prepared is the country’s government to respond. In a risk index that includes 173 countries, experts of the Bonn-based […]
A shockwave, an explosion, a fire. The boat lets in water and topples over, passengers hang on to life boats or jump into the waves. Few circumstances have the tragic intensity of a shipwreck, which takes mere seconds to throw human beings into life-threatening situations, where the cruelest of decisions have to be made: who […]